Jarl Einar lay dead, his ambitions ended by a bolt from the Valkyrie's Sting.
Ragnar stood over Einar's body, his chest heaving. Gyda was reloading her crossbow with methodical, terrifying precision.
"We aren't done," Ragnar rasped, wiping soot from his face. "Einar has an army in the sewers. If they break into the palace, we lose the city."
General Bjorn burst into the hallway, his sword dripping with blood. "Director! The courtyard is secure. We caught the stragglers. But the scouts report movement in the tunnels. A lot of movement."
"They are coming up," Ragnar realized. "Thousands of them."
He looked at the narrow stone staircase leading down to the scullery the only exit point for the sewer network inside the palace.
"It's a bottleneck," Gyda said, her eyes narrowing. "They have to come out single file."
"Exactly," Ragnar nodded. "And we are going to make sure they regret it."
